AHCI Driver install question

[TourGuide]

OK - nOOb question time.

The new motherboard I have to install Win7 on doesn't have a floppy drive controller on it. This will be the first board I've installed an OS on without that drive. I am unfamiliar with loading device drivers like AHCI that require pre-installation with the OS on a mobo like this.

Here are my questions:

1. What is likely easier, USB install, or just preparing a CD\DVD?

2. Will I have to do anything special to the flash drive, or the CD in order to load the drivers from it, or is it simply a matter of copying the files to the device and loading them when asked?

 

[Marmion]

Just slap the drivers onto a USB and stick it in and load the drivers when appropriate in the win7 install. If they're just standard sata drives then Win7 should have them already and see your disks without needing to load sata drivers (I think).

 

[TourGuide]

Just slap the drivers onto a USB and stick it in and load the drivers when appropriate in the win7 install. If they're just standard sata drives then Win7 should have them already and see your disks without needing to load sata drivers (I think).

Well, I'm asking because I plan to install them in AHCI mode - so I'll need to deal with the drivers.

 

[SimMike2]

For the majority of SATA controllers, I don't think you need to put a driver on floppy disk, like you did with XP. Windows 7 seems to do this automatically. I was even able to switch to AHCI after I installed Windows 7 in IDE emulation mode, all without too much difficulty. There is another thread in this topic covering AHCI and Windows 7. Lots of good tips there. I even found a way to change my XP install to AHCI without too much difficulty after the OS had been installed for months.

 

[Whisper2]

I recently installed Win7 x64. I selected AHCI in the BIOS first and then installed the OS. Win 7 handled it without my having to supply an additional driver. After the install was completed, I then installed the Intel Matrix Manager. Everything works fine. Win 7 is the first OS I have installed that did not leave some "?" or "!" in Device Manager. It had drivers for everything

According to Intel, one needs to F6 a driver only with XP. Intel also states that the BIOS should be set prior to installing the OS to avoid potential problems.

 

[TourGuide]

I recently installed Win7 x64. I selected AHCI in the BIOS first and then installed the OS. Win 7 handled it without my having to supply an additional driver. After the install was completed, I then installed the Intel Matrix Manager. Everything works fine. Win 7 is the first OS I have installed that did not leave some "?" or "!" in Device Manager. It had drivers for everything

According to Intel, one needs to F6 a driver only with XP. Intel also states that the BIOS should be set prior to installing the OS to avoid potential problems.

EXCELLENT! Thank you VERY much for sharing this bit of information. I was hoping it would be just this way.

 

[mcveigh]

I just installed Win7 64 bit on a AMD 785 based motherboard.
I set the ports to AHCI and had no issues installing.